'Totally aghast'

While it is not unknown for them to eat some forms of fruit along with grass, small plants, bushes, twigs and tree bark, in Bhutan it seems that they have only recently developed a fondness for oranges.

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It is thought that there is not enough food for elephants in the Bhutanese jungle

Villagers believe that the lack of fodder in the jungles has forced the giants into the orchards in search of food and that it is only a matter of time before the animals start moving into other orchards in the south-east.

The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) in Bhutan says that in recent years, clashes between elephants and humans in the south of the country have become more commonplace.